Black Hills Run 2017! June 19-23

Mike, my purpose in life is to make you feel needed.  How am I doing?

I will bring brats and buns for everybody for dinner Sunday night.  I figure I better start paying it forward.  Do you have a head count Oilly?  If we may use your grill, that will be a quick meal for folks setting up camp.   

Is it time to leave yet?

The Belle Fourche crew plans on being there for Sunday night as well. Should be 6 of us. Is anyone up for ice cream and Lazzaroni Amaratto for desert?

Kate, I have had experience with the replacement horn button having the plastic inner part stick and keep the horn blasting. Hope yours did not overheat and burn out from being stuck too long.

I have sanded the offending part and put some lube on it.

Kate, does your pit crew include the ones you had set up for Nancy, Sam Elliott etc etc.

As of 4:10 PM today, The indicated / confirmed count (which may change from day to day)

Red Willy wrote: Tom, we are staying at Camp Oily. I finally convinced Lori we were missing to much going back to the campsite each night. Looking forward to it

My thoughts exactly. Driving back and forth to Belle everyday puts a crimp in our style. Now we will get to see the after hours side of the group.
And yes Joe I probably could run most of the trails on two cylinders but I'd have to be in low range the whole way

Rick

Hi John,  Dan & Vicky and Ruthie & I plan to be at your house after lunch on Sunday the 18th.

"Eeyore" is ready to go, "Huckleberry" not so much.  Dan & I will get him ready soon. Not sure what we are working on but Dan said he has the parts.

Tom

OK, Rick R , Joe, Carol and I are going to sacrifice for you all and do more trail recon today. I've decided to spice up one run and make you all rich!!!!!!! Prepare to stop and see the Broken Boot Gold Mine. You've probably seen it when we drove by it. It's just above Deadwood on Hwy. 85.  Cute little hard rock mine that gives tours and--------------you can pan gold on location !!!!!!! Gold is very heavy , so we may need overload springs to haul it back to camp. It's a real mine and not just a tourist trap. Amazing how the Gold Rush scoured and found the best hot spots in Deadwood gulch. Those early days of prospecting must have been amazing. The Homestake Gold Mine began life as the very rich lead (pronounced leed) that was the source of much of the placer gold found in the creek beds below. A lead is a vein of rich gold ore with actual visable gold usually found running with quartz. They followed this lead all the way down to 9000 feet below the surface. The temps down there reached 140 degrees. They had to pump air down and ground water out.  Back in 1963 , my family and I stopped to pan gold as tourists.  A fellow had a claim and found he could make more money letting tourists pan the actual gravel from the claim than he could mining it. I still remember the guy accross from me , panning in the wooden trough.  We all were stunned when he panned out a old silver dollar.  Very exciting. The attraction owner was just as amazed.  Cool guy, what you found was yours. Just like the old days.  So, one of you may find a 20.00 gold piece, who knows. So, in ending, bring some extra cash if you would like the tour or try your hand at panning. ! 

 Going to be challenging this year to keep all together. If you have a radio, bring it. If you don't have one, you should get one.  I'll be attempting to give you all turn instructions. The column will be miles long, so I think 4 spaced Jeeps will be the main radio communications guys. That way if someone doesn't hear directions, they will help with this. After a difficult traffic turn, I'll find a spot and pull over to group up, but I think we need all to do their best to keep up, and also let me know if there is a stopage. If someone breaks and is not fixable, we'll have to move on and have those ride with friends. Then come back with a haul rig unless a fellow Jeeper wants to drop out for the day and help get the rig back to camp. We are up to 32 known Jeeps.